Tough case of worms in our flock

[Linney]

We noticed some small rice looking worms/eggs in several of our chicken's poop and finally decided to worm them. After much research we decided to use Valbazen since it seemed to cover all the types of worms chickens could get. We wormed beginning of October (1/2cc per standard, 1/4cc for bantams) and repeated the worming on day 10 for all the chickens. Now a month later, we see the same rice looking worms/eggs in several poops. I am very frustrated because we did not want to worm in the first place but decided that going into winter we would rather our chickens not have to manage worms as well as the cold. How many times does it take to get rid of a tough case???? We lost a young silkie hen last week and I suspect it was the worms that got her. We just want a healthy flock and work hard to keep their pens as clean as possible but are at a loss for what to do at this point. Our flock consists of about 25 birds and we would really appreciate any advice about what to do next.

 

[Michael Apple]

We noticed some small rice looking worms/eggs in several of our chicken's poop and finally decided to worm them. After much research we decided to use Valbazen since it seemed to cover all the types of worms chickens could get. We wormed beginning of October (1/2cc per standard, 1/4cc for bantams) and repeated the worming on day 10 for all the chickens. Now a month later, we see the same rice looking worms/eggs in several poops. I am very frustrated because we did not want to worm in the first place but decided that going into winter we would rather our chickens not have to manage worms as well as the cold. How many times does it take to get rid of a tough case???? We lost a young silkie hen last week and I suspect it was the worms that got her. We just want a healthy flock and work hard to keep their pens as clean as possible but are at a loss for what to do at this point. Our flock consists of about 25 birds and we would really appreciate any advice about what to do next.

Those sound like tapeworms by your description. All that happened is your birds picked up more worms. Poultry become infected by eating infected intermediate hosts. Intermediate hosts are slugs, snails, and flies. You need to dose 2 days in a row both times, 10 days apart. Either that, or you need Praziquantel found in some horse wormers like Zimectrin Gold. It is in a paste form, and you need to use a small amount for each bird. Think of the size of a pea, and that is the amount to give large fowl.

You may want to cut back overgrowth of vegetation which may provide a larger population of mollusk type critters like slugs and snails which your birds are eating.

 

[dawg53]

Quote:
x2 I recommend using Zimectrin Gold equine paste to worm your birds. Withhold feed for 24 hours, but not water. After 24 hours are up, give each chicken a "pea" size amount of the paste orally to each chicken. Repeat this procedure in 10 days. You can put the paste on a small piece of bread and give a piece to each chicken to eat. Be careful, they'll try to steal the bread from each other. It might be best to separate and dose each bird individually. They will wipe their beaks on the ground after dosing, this is normal.
You will have to maintain a regular worming schedule now that your soil is contaminated with tapeworm eggs. Insects are the host for the tapeworm eggs, chickens eat the insects. You can use the valbazen for regular worming to keep the tapes in check.

 

[Michael Apple]

x2 I recommend using Zimectrin Gold equine paste to worm your birds. Withhold feed for 24 hours, but not water. After 24 hours are up, give each chicken a "pea" size amount of the paste orally to each chicken. Repeat this procedure in 10 days. You can put the paste on a small piece of bread and give a piece to each chicken to eat. Be careful, they'll try to steal the bread from each other. It might be best to separate and dose each bird individually. They will wipe their beaks on the ground after dosing, this is normal.
You will have to maintain a regular worming schedule now that your soil is contaminated with tapeworm eggs. Insects are the host for the tapeworm eggs, chickens eat the insects. You can use the valbazen for regular worming to keep the tapes in check.

X2, and better with specifics. There are pigeon folks who worm once a month in some areas. My problem with that frequency is worms becoming resistant to some anthelmintics. Every three months may be a good idea for a time, and trying to make the environment difficult for populations of slugs and snails to escalate. That is why I cut pasture grass and keep bushes trimmed up off the ground in their yards.

I forgot about beetles too, which are attracted to old, deep litter, mulch, and humid environments:

The most pathogenic of poultry tapeworms is Raillietina cesticillus, which has the beetle as its host. The mature tapeworm may be 12-13 cm in length.
Birds become infected after feeding on infected beetles which will in turn have become infected from poultry droppings.
Heavy infestations can cause severe weight loss. Chickens over 10 weeks tend to be less susceptible than younger chicks.
http://www.sprcentre.com/sprc/Worm_Control_in_Poultry.htm

 

[Linney]

Thank you for the information. I think we will try the Zimectrin. Do you think its too soon to worm them again this weekend since we just wormed end of September with Valbazen?

 

[Michael Apple]

Thank you for the information. I think we will try the Zimectrin. Do you think its too soon to worm them again this weekend since we just wormed end of September with Valbazen?

No, it won't harm your birds. I do recommend using vitamin-probiotic powder in waterers for 3 days after treatment though. Sometimes I get forgetful about complete info. Dawg mentioned witholding feed so the dewormer is more effective. He's right, and we both know there are a few rules to it. The day you withhold feed, use poultry vitamin-probiotic soluble powder in waterers (Vitamins, Electrolytes "Plus" by AgriLabs is a good premix, or if you have vitamin-electrolyte powder, 1 tsp per gallon of Probios dispersible powder added will make it complete). Either of those two I mentioned are commonly stocked at livestock feed stores. That night you can worm, then in the morning set out feed and fresh supplemented water. Birds will tend to gorge, so it is best to lay out smaller amounts of feed so you don't encourage crop impaction. If I worm that way, it is more convenient on a weekend, so I can dole out small amounts of food periodically throughout the day. Let us know how it goes for you and your birds.

 

[Linney]

Thanks for all the great info. Got all the birds wormed on Saturday and will plan to worm again in 10 days. The only thing we weren't prepared for was how crazy they got when we put out food the next morning. You would have thought they hadn't been fed for weeks, silly birds !

 

[Michael Apple]

Thanks for all the great info. Got all the birds wormed on Saturday and will plan to worm again in 10 days. The only thing we weren't prepared for was how crazy they got when we put out food the next morning. You would have thought they hadn't been fed for weeks, silly birds !

Glad to hear it. Which dewormer did you use?

 

[Linney]

Zimectrin Gold

 

[Michael Apple]

Zimectrin Gold

Good. The Praziquantel in it will zap those flat-headed thieves.